Amakusa Red

These smallish chunks of Amakusa Red aren’t seen all that
often. Larger blocks of this stone are readily available but many of them seem
to be problematic for razor honing.

Like the other piece I have posted, I believe this to be a vintage-mined
example. This one has a very pronounced striped pattern and I’m certain that
this is of the ‘ Red’ variety. Some
people say the these stones are in the 800x grit-range, and that seems to be
about right here.

The larger Amakusa I’ve experienced were loaded with
abrasive particles that were very inconsistent, but they were efficient cutters.
One in particular was infested with very hard quartzite inclusions that can,
and did, rip a razor’s edge to shreds. They all seem to be quite thirsty, and
the stone/slurry feels quite gritty under the blade. With some work – the mud feels
a bit pasty/silky.

This piece of Amakusa is about as hard as the other piece I
have, but it seems to be somewhat more coarse. Even so, this one is also quite
clean and consistent. I haven’t lapped
it yet, but the sides are sealed with Cashew lacquer.